Expansible chair



` Jan. 11, 1955 J. w. LEARY ETAL ExPANsIBLE cHAgR Filed Jan. 15, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet i' P417 esx INVENTORS LAQ/wes w. .4E/,nevi

Jan. 11, 1955 J. w. LEARY s1-AL EXPANSIBLE CHAIR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 15, 1954 INVENTORS 4Z FLoeE/vcf 5. M4/VGMLOMI/W,

yrToe/VEYS United States Patent Office 2,699,202 Patented Jan. 1l, 1955 EXPANSIBLE CHAIR James W. Leary and Florence E. Mangialomini, Bloomfield, N. J.

Application January 15, 1954, Serial No. 404,234

4 Claims. (Cl. 155-112) This invention relates to improvements in expansible furniture, and more particularly to a two-section expansible chair, the primary object of the invention being to provide a practical and efficient chair of this kind which can be easily and quickly expanded from a oneseat width chair, occupying a minimum of floor space, to a love seat width, so as to provide for additional seating capacity in the expanded condition of the chair.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a love seat of the character indicated above which can be collapsed to single seat chair dimensions, when desired, so as to occupy a minimum of oor space.

A further object of the invention is to provide furniture pieces of the character indicated above which can be constructed in rugged, serviceable, and attractive forms at relatively low cost.

Other important objects and advantageous features of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings, wherein, for purposes of illustration only, a specific embodiment of the invention is set forth in detail.

Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a chair according to the present invention, in collapsed or contracted condition;

Figure 2 is a view of the chair in expanded condition;

Figures 3 and 4 are transverse vertical sections taken on the lines 3-3 and 4 4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a front perspective of the chair in expanded condition, showing the auxiliary frames in full lines and the chair section frames in phantom lines;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 showing the chair sections separated;

Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view showing cooperation of portions of the auxiliary frames in the expanded condition of the chair; and

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary rear elevation, partly in section, showing cooperation of portions of the auxiliary frames in the expanded condition of the chair.

Referring in detail to the drawings, wherein like numerals designate like parts throughout the several views, the illustrated expansible chair, generally designated at 9, is composed of a relatively stationary chair section 10 and a movable chair section 11.

The relatively stationary chair section 10 comprises a chair frame which includes an open rectangular seat cushion support 12 having fixed on its rear edge an upstanding open rectangular back cushion support 13. The seat cushion support 12 has a depending iloor engaging leg 14 on its front element 15 which is laterally inwardly offset from the inboard element 16 of the support 12. A floor engaging arm member 17 is secured to the outboard element 18 of the cushion support 12 and to the outboard element 19 of the back cushion support 13. The back support 13 has a depending floor engaging leg 20 on its rear outboard element 19.

Beneath the seat cushion support 12 is located the stationary chair section auxiliary frame 22 which is of open rectangular form and of substantially the same dimensions as the seat cushion support 12:

The auxiliary frame 22, which is formed of angle iron, comprises an outboard element 23 joined at its rear end to the outboard end of a rear element 24, an inboard element 25 joined at its rear end to the inboard end of the rear element 24, and a front element 26 joined at its outboard end to the forward end of the outboard element 23. As shown in Figure 7 the inboard element 25 extends forwardly at its forward end beyond the front element 26 and terminates in an outboardly directed stop lug 27. Further, the inboard end of the front element 26 is spaced from the outboard side of the inboard element 25 and terminates in a forwardly extending arm 28 which is laterally spaced from the inboard element 25 and has a terminal end 29 spaced rearwardly from the stop lug 27. A fixed leg 30 depends from the inboard element 25 near its forward end.

The auxiliary frame 22 is secured, as indicated at 31 and 32 to the arm member 17 and the leg 20 of the chair section frame and is spaced below the seat cushion support 12.

The auxiliary frame 22 has a fixed depending leg 33 on the rear end of the inboard element 25, and a swingable prop 34 is pivoted intermediate its ends, as indicated at 35, to the rearward side of the leg 33. A contractile spring 36 is stretched between and secured to a point on the leg 33 below the pivot 35 and a point on the prop 34 above the pivot 35, so that the prop 34 normally occupies the angular recumbent position shown in dotted lines in Figure 8. The prop 34 is arranged to be cammed into the erect or vertical position shown in full lines in Figure 8 by engagement with the curved lower end 36 of the prop 34 with a cam 37 secured to and projecting forwardly from a oor engaging leg 38, which has a floor engaging roller 39, and which is a part of the movable chair section 11, when the chair sections 10 and 11 are collapsed together. In the erect position of the prop 34 its upper end 40 is supportably engaged with the inboard element 16 of seat cushion support 12 near the rear element 24, thereof, as shown in Figure 8.

The movable chair section 11 comprises a rectangular open auxiliary at bar iron frame 41 which includes a front element 42, an outboard element 43 extending rearwardly from the outboard end of the front member 42, a rear element 44 extending inboardly from the rear end of the outboard element 43, and an inboard element 45 extending forwardly from the inboard end of the rear element 44 and joined at its forward end to the inboard end of the front element 42. The auxiliary frame 41 is of substantially the same dimensions as the auxiliary frame 22 of the stationary chair section 10.

Secured to the outboard side of the outboard element 43 is a oor engaging arm member 46, and secured to the rear side of the rear element 44 and projecting upwardly therefrom is an open rectangular back cushion support 47, from whose lower end the aforementioned roller equipped leg 38 depends at the outboard end of the support 47. The movable chair section 11 is devoid of any other iioor engaging legs.

As shown in Figure 7, the inboard element 45 of the movable chair section auxiliary frame 41 has secured to the inboard side thereof two vertical standards 48, 48 which rise above the inboard element 45 and terminate at their upper ends in rounded heads 49, 49. The standards are located near the front and rear ends of the inboard element 45.

Secured to the inboard side of the inboard element 45 at the rear and front sides of the standards 48, 48 are L-shaped brackets 50, 50 which include inboardly projecting horizontal portions 51, 51 traversed by vertical axis pins 52, 52 carrying rollers 53, 53 on a level below the lower edge of the inboard element 45.

The heads 49, 49 of the standards 48, 48 are arranged to supportably engage the underside of the inboard element of the seat cushion support 12 of the stationary chair section 10 in the expanded condition of the chair, as shown in Figure 5. In this expanded condition of the chair 9, the rollers 53, 53 rest upon the horizontal ange 54 of the inboard element 25 of the stationary chair section auxiliary frame 22, as shown in Figure 7. The rollers 53, 53 and the standards 48, 4S are arranged to be disengaged from the positions shown in Figures 5 and 7 by moving the movable chair section 11 forwardly and laterally relative to the stationary chair section 10 so that the rollers 53, 53 pass through the space between the vertical flange 55 of the stationary section auxiliary frame 22 and the arm 28 of the auxiliary frame 22 and through the space between the terminal end 29 of the arm 28 and the lug 27, to enable separation of the chair sections and 11. Reversing these operations produces the described engagement of the auxiliary frames in their expanded relation.

To collapse the chair sections 10 and 11 together to form a single seat chair, the movable section 11 is pushed toward the stationary section from the positions shown in Figure 5, so that the rollers 53, 53 slide on the horizontal flanges 57 and 5S of the front and rear elements 26 and 24, respectively, of the stationary section auxiliary frame 22, until the rollers 53, S3 rest upon the horizontal iiange 59 of the outboard element 23 of the auxiliary frame 22.

As shown in Figures l and 2, the chair 9 includes a seat cushion 60 which rests upon the stationary chair section seat support 12, and a removable back cushion 61 which rests against the back cushion support 13 of the stationary section 10, in the contracted condition of the chair 9, the back cushion support 47 of the movable section 11 then being behind and registered with the front section back cushion support 13.

When the chair 9 is expanded to form a two-seat love seat, as shown in Figure 2, the back cushion 61 is placed upon the auxiliary frame 41 of the movable chair section 11, the back supports of the two chair sections being then in line with each other.

The chair sections 10 and 11 can be lightly upholstered and covered where desired, as indicated at 63 and 64.

What is claimed is:

1. In ari expansible chair, a relatively stationary section and a movable section, said stationary section including a chair section frame having a horizontal seat cushion support having floor engaging means, a seat cushion on said seat cushion support, a back cushion support rising from said seat cushion support, a removable back cushion resting against said back cushion support, said stationary section having a rectangular open auxiliary frame xed to the chair section frame and spaced beneath said chair section seat cushion support, said auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an nboard element, tioor engaging legs on and depending from said nboard element, said movable section comprising an open rectangular auxiliary frame, onto which the back cushion is adapted to be transferred to provide another seat cushion, said movable section auxiliary frame having an outboard clement and an nboard element, floor engaging means depending from said outboard element and supporting said movable auxiliary frame at a level between the seat support and the auxiliary frame of the stationary chair section, a single leg fixed on and depending from said nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame, standards rising from the inboard element of the movable auxiliary frame for supportably engaging the nboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame when the movable auxiliary frame is moved laterally relative to the stationary auxiliary frame from a contracted condition in which the auxiliary frames are in superimposed relation, roller means on and depending from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame arranged to rest upon the nboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame in the expanded condition of the chair sections and to rest upon the outboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame in the contracted condition of the chair.

2. In an expansible chair, a relatively stationary section and a movable section, said stationary section including a chair section frame having a horizontal seat cushion support having floor engaging means, a seat cushion on said seat cushion support, a back cushion support rising from said seat cushion support, a removable back cushion resting against said back cushion support, said stationary section having a rectangular open auxiliary frame tixed to the chair section frame and spaced beneath said chair section seat cushion support, said auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an nboard element, tioor engaging legs on and depending from said nboard element, said movable section comprising an open rectangular auxiliary frame, onto which the back cushion is adapted to be transferred to provide another seat cushion, said movable section auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an nboard element, tloor engaging means depending from said outboard element and supporting said movable auxiliary frame at a level between the seat support and the auxiliary frame of the stationary chair section, a single leg fixed on and depending from said nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame, standards rising from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame for supportably engaging the nboard element of .the stationary auxiliary frame when the'movable auxiliary frame is moved laterally relative to the stationary auxiliary frame from a contracted condition in which the auxiliary frames are in superimposed relation, roller means on and depending from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame arranged to rest upon the nboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame in the expanded condition of. the chair sections and to rest upon the outboard clement of the stationary auxiliary frame in the contracted condition of the chair, a spring retracted swingable prop pivoted on a portion of said stationary auxiliary frame, cam means on the movable auxiliary frame arranged to engage said prop and turn said prop from a recumbent retracted position to an erect operative position in supporting engagement with a portion of the stationary auxiliary [rame as the movable auxiliary frame is moved from a contracted to an expanded position relative to the stationary auxiliary frame. t

3. ln an expansible chair, a relatively stationary section and a movable section, said stationary section including a chair section frame having a horizontal seat cushion stipport having iioor engaging means, a seat cushion on said seat cushion support, a back cushion support rising from said seat cushion support, a removable back cushion resting against said back cushion support, said stationary section having a rectangular open auxiliary frame fixed to the chair section frame and spaced beneath said chair scction seat cushion support, said auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an nboard element, floor engaging legs on and depending from said nboard element, said movable section comprising an open rectangular auxiliary frame, onto which the back cushion is adapted to bc transferred to provide another seat cushion, said movable section auxiliary frame having an outboard clement and an nboard element, oor engaging means depending from said outboard element and supporting said movable auxiliary frame at a level between the scat support and thc auxiliary frame of the stationary chair section, a single leg fixed on and depending from said nboard clement of the movable auxiliary frame, standards rising from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame for stipportably engaging the nboard element of thc stationary auxiliary frame when the movable auxiliary frame is moved laterally relative to the stationary auxiliary t rame from a Contracted condition in which the auxiliary frames are in superimposed relation, roller means on and depending from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame arranged to rest upon the nboard element ot the stationary auxiliary frame in the expanded condition of the chair sections and to rest upon the outboard clement of the stationary auxiliary frame in the contracted condition of the chair, the front and rear elements of the stationary auxiliary frames having horizontal iianges along which said rollers are arranged to be supported as the movable auxiliary frame is moved relative to the stationary auxiliary frame.

4. In an expansible chair, a relatively stationary section and a movable section, said stationary section including a chair section frame having a horizontal seat cushion support having oor engaging means, a seat cushion on said seat cushion support, a back cushion support rising from said seat cushion support, a removable back cushion resting against said back cushion support, said stationary section having a rectangular open auxiliary frame lixed to the chair section frame and spaced beneath said chair section seat cushion support, said auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an inboard element, iloor engaging legs on and depending from said nboard element, said movable section comprising an open rectangular auxiliary frame, onto which the back cushion is adapted to be transferred to provide another seat cushion, said movable scction auxiliary frame having an outboard element and an nboard element, iloor engaging means depending from said outboard element and supporting said movable auxiliary frame at a level between the seat support and the auxiliary frame of the stationary chair section, a single leg fixed on and depending from said nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame, standards rising from the nboard element of the movable auxiliary frame for supportably engaging the nboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame when the movable auxiliary trame is moved laterally relative to the stationary auxiliary frame from a contracted condition in which the auxiliary frames are in superimposed relation, roller means on and depending from the inboard element of the movable auxiliary frame arranged to rest upon the inboard element of the stationary auxiliary frame in the expanded condition 5 chair and in end to end relation in the expanded condition of the chair.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 129,537 Crosscup July 16, 1872 2,163,3 65 Terschmann June 20, 1939 2,187,689 Jaray et al Jan. 16, 1940 

